ost people in the world can’t digest milk. They can digest milk when Mthey are little babies, but, as they grow older, their bodies stop making lactase, the enzyme that breaks down lactose, the sugar in milk. Drinking Cheese and milk even as toddlers can upset their digestion and make them feel ill. But many Northern Europeans are able to drink milk all their lives, and yogurt were so it was thought that was why they had dairies in ancient times. Now research shows that, when Europeans started dairy farms thousands of years ago, they were lactose intolerant, and had to turn the milk from dairy foods their cows, goats and sheep into cheese and yogurt. That is a process that uses bacteria to break down the lactose and makes the milk digestible. After 4,000 years of eating cheese and yogurt, researchers believe, those before milk ancient dairy farmer’s bodies evolved and began making lactase all their lives so they could fi nally drink fresh milk. Photo/Myrabella
CK Reporter Grace Alexander, ColoradoKids Denver October 28, 2014 eXPLoRiNG ouR LocaL PRehisToRY hen you think of the great and ancient di- Wnosaurs what comes to mind? For me, I think of Dinosaur LoW-cosT, LoW-fLYiNG Ridge in Morrison. DRoNes aiD iN The fiGhT aGaiNsT MaLaRia By Thomas Krumholz, 12, a CK Reporter e often hear how loss of from Denver Whabitat can put animals in danger, but, in Malaysia, changes in land use was sus- Celebrating its 25th anniversary, pected of endangering people. the Ridge is world famous for dino- A type of malaria that had not saur fossils, and visiting the Ridge been a human problem had be- again was a great experience. gun appearing in cities and vil- There were so many different lages, and medical researchers exhibits I couldn’t decide which suspected infected macaques one was my favorite. were moving from former The exhibits in the main build- Welcome to the Ridge! A model of a former resident of the area jungle to less remote areas. ing include dinosaur bones, and greets visitors to Dinosaur Ridge in Morrison. Photo by Thomas Krumholz Cloud cover often makes sat- maps of what Colorado looked ellite imagery impossible, so like up to 150 million years ago. tory of the Earth is just exciting and beautiful – it trying to keep track of chang- Another exhibit is The Marsh, an ancient marsh- ultimately gets at the question of how it all began. es that way wouldn’t work . land (which is now desert hillside) where many I think my favorite thing is this entire place.” Instead, researchers used dinosaur fossils are found. Something that has changed over the years at low cost eBee drones, hand- And fi nally the Track Site, where paleontologists Dinosaur Ridge is that the road through the Ridge launched foam fl yers with are still fi nding new dinosaur foot prints today! used to be open to public traffi c. motors and cameras, to pho- I asked a couple of the people who make Dino- More recently, the road has been closed and can tograph areas from 350 to 400 saur Ridge work what their favorite exhibits were. only be used by pedestrians or Dinosaur Ridge meters up, well below clouds. Amber Cain, membership coordinator at the shuttles. As a result, the area is now a much safer They made maps, mark- Ridge said, “My favorite thing here is the track site place to explore and have a fun time. ing homes where people had where many different kinds of dinos used to live. When I was there I saw many students and real- caught the malaria, to show This is what made us famous and is just a really ized this would be a great place for a fi eld trip. how the loss of habitat from cool experience to see.” Erin LaCount, the Ridge’s education program the clearing of jungle is bring- Doug Hartshorn, a paleotechnologist (person coordinator, said that last year 17,000 kids came to ing macaques, and their para- who studies old ways of doing things) from the the Ridge “and each one of them had a blast.” site-spreading mosquitoes, into Morrison Natural History Museum who volun- To me, if 17,000 kids came here last year, this populated areas. Photo/SenseFly teers at the Ridge said, “Learning about the his- archaeological dig is a pretty marvelous place! Immerse yourself in a challenging fantasy tale n a world of humans and turned upside down. rators’ voices was crisp and writing did make the story more jinni (also known as genies), Zayele is consumed in a well-defined. engaging, it was Ia war between the two races whirlwind of fire and ash while There were slightly discon- is raging. Najwa is left behind. many things that certing when Zayele’s wish had been “I you learned along you were thrust By Emma Davis, wish for you take my place and with the protago- directly into the 13, a CK Reporter send me home.” nists, immersing middle of a story from Lafayette But instead of returning to you ever deeper that has been her small village, Zayele is into the book. simmering on its transported to the underground I would have own for years. In “Fire Wish,” by Amber cavern that the jinni inhabit. liked if more But the tale Lough, when soon-to-be-wed In a world of hostility and things had been underneath was Zayele captures jinni Najwa and mistrust the two girls must explained in worth the work, wishes on her, their lives are masquerade as each other, and greater detail and the wait. during that time they begin to and if the two I would recom- realize that the rift between girls had en- mend this book Colorado Kids their races may not be as wide countered more to kids ages as it seems. bumps along twelve and up. is produced by I really enjoyed this book. Its their journey that Amber Lough Denver Post Educational Services plot and storyline were engag- truly tested their has given us an Executive Editor: Dana Plewka ing and often surprising. characters. entertaining read and I look [email protected] The barrier between the nar- Although the author’s way of forward to a sequel! CK Editor: Mike Peterson [email protected] We welcome your comments.
For tools to extend the learning in ‘Legends’ writer has another hit this feature, look under o have the title of “melf- time to lose. more fun and enjoyable. “eEdition lessons” at: etto” is to have the worst “The Young Elites” by Ma- And through each point of www.ColoradoNIE.com Tnickname anyone can rie Lu is an excellent book for view, the author expresses call somebody else, but to be teens. each character’s eEditions of the Post are a melfetto is a whole different Full of non-stop opinions and free of charge for classroom use. story. action and excite- Once you start reading, feelings well to Contact us for information on all ment it sucks the the reader and our programs. be careful: It’s addictive, reader into the and it’s very difficult to put lets the charac- By Yejin Campbell, book! ter point out an Denver Post Educational Services down this book. 101 W. Colfax Ave. 13, a CK Reporter For those who excellent reason Denver CO 80202 from Thornton have read Lu’s why he or she (303) 954-3974 “Legend,” this new book series feels that way. (800) 336-7678 is a fresh new start and just as Once you start reading, be Adelina Amouteru, she tells captivating as the careful: It’s addic- Stories without bylines were us, is tired of being used, hurt, other series has tive, and it’s very written by the editor. and cast aside. been. difficult to put She is a melfetto, a girl who The 341 pages down this book. Beyond these four pages survived the viscous blood fe- of this book were I would recom- ver, a disease that swept across intriguing, mys- mend this book her country and which left her terious and the for mature teens A story on Page One tells how scarred in many places. author employed because of a lot changes in land use bring Her once beautiful black hair excellent choices of intense scenes, disease closer to people. turned silver, her long eyelashes of words to and what might went pale as snow, and a scar express and de- be considered Look through today’s paper has replaced her left eye. scribe the scenes horror as well. for other stories about However, some of the survivors in the novel. However, “The problems that come from are rumored to have more than Marie Lu also Young Elites” changes in how an area is scars. used multiple by Marie Lu is a being used, or for stories They are believed to have point of views, beautifully writ- about improvements that mysterious and powerful gifts. each from a dif- ten story full of come about because of They are the Young Elites. ferent character adventure, mys- changes in land use. Now Adelina must escape and with different tery, and fantasy look for help, and there’s no opinions that made the story for mature teens to enjoy. Northern White Rhino likely to soon be extinct
he rhinoceros in this pic- There are over 17,000 southern ture is named Angalifu white rhinos, mostly in South Af- Tand he lives at the San rica but in a band from the east Diego Safari Park. to west coast of that part of the Angalifu is one of only six continent. northern white rhinos left in the The northern white rhinos world, and one of the only two once lived in a smaller area in the males. central part of Africa, and, in the There had been three males, early 1970s, there were about 500 but the only one who they hoped of them in the wild. might become a father, Suni, died All rhinos have been in danger last week at a wild animal re- of being killed by poachers, who serve in Kenya. sell their horns in Asia to people Another male, Sudan, also lives who believe they have special at the reserve but cannot mate. medical value. (They don’t.) Naturalists believe Angalifu is But the northern white rhinos too old to become a father, so it have been in even greater danger, seems almost certain that, when because that part of Africa has he, Sudan and the four females – seen a lot of warfare and violence. Above, Angalifu, one of the six one in San Diego, two in Kenya That has made it harder to keep northern white rhinos in the and one at a zoo in the Czech Re- track of lawbreakers, and has also world, and one of the only two public – die, that will be the end added to the number of local peo- males left, at the San Diego Safari of the northern white rhinoceros. ple who are desperate for money. Park. At right, the former home Their subspecies is closely re- For now, conservationists in Ke- of the northern white rhino is in a lated to the southern white rhi- nya hope to use a southern white troubled part of Africa, while the noceros, but, as you could guess rhino father to produce a calf so southern white rhino’s home is by the name, the two lived in dif- that at least the mother’s genes in an area where conservation is ferent parts of Africa. will remain alive in the world. more active. Photo and map: Wikipedia ck Kids and adults can find live links to information about stories in Colorado Kids at www.ColoradoNIE.com
Rules: Every row across, everySudoku column down and each of the six smaller boxes must contain numerals 1,2,3,4,5 and 6, one time and one time only. The solution to this week’s puzzle is on Page 4.
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45 TV WRiTeR TuRNs PaiR of shoRT books kick off NeW seRies iNTo a NoVeLisT az is an ordinary kid phone and calls the neighbor itch Larson, author son responded, “They’re so dif- ghost and he is perfectly back, agreeing to take the case. of “Pennyroyal Acad- ferent. When you write a script, Khappy until a single The sequel is packed with Memy,” was recently at you have to write 30 pages and wrecking ball turns his life fun, mystery, and fantasy, just the Mountains & Plains Inde- you have half an hour. upside down by knocking down like the first book. pendent Booksellers Associa- “Books have no limits, and his haunt, an old school house. Dori Hillestad Butler does tion Fall Show and spoke with that’s kind of scary, because a great job incorporating the Colorado Kids. there’s almost too many options. unexpected into her books. It’s easier to write scripts.” By Maria Ciobanu, For example, if you expect “Pennyroyal Academy” is a 10, a CK Reporter Claire to be scared when she By Cara Dulin, gripping book and wonderful from Denver meets Kaz for the first time, 13, a CK Reporter for anyone who enjoys fanta- you’ll have to understand she from Denver sies about princesses, witches, has been seeing ghosts for knights, and dragons, but even “The Haunted Library,” the nearly a year. Asked how he happened to writers have their doubts. first in a Claire and Kaz bond write “Pennyroyal “I’m afraid that series together because the author Academy,” Larson I’ll open the book of two has them tell each other said he was think- and see that I books so their life stories and she ing of ideas for TV missed something far, has a also makes them about the shows, and came or I’ll say, ‘Oh, I very good same age. up with “Princess messed that up!’ balance of I give these mini novels Bootcamp,” about or, ‘I should have suspense, five out of five stars for the girls training to be done it like that!’” mystery, balance of fantasy, mystery, princesses. Larson said. and fan- suspense, and emotion. The show got to To make this tasy. These the point where book appeal to It is also books people were audi- boys as well as very emo- have tioning for voices, girls, Larson decid- tional. easy- but then fizzled. ed to add knights. The scene to-read Then a friend “I knew I wanted where Kaz content. suggested he turn boys in there,” gets blown Al- his idea into a he said, “but I away from his family and though book. Eight years later, “Penny- couldn’t think of much to do into a library might bring they are royal Academy” emerged. with princes. So I decided on tears to your eyes. not graphic Larson said that, when he knights, because then I could “The Haunted Library: novels, was younger, he never dreamed have the knights fight dragons.” The Ghost in the Attic” there are of being anything but a book Larson says his next step is to is an adventure packed one or author, but as he got older, he finish the second book, which sequel to “The Haunted two funny began writing movies instead of is coming out next winter. He’s Library” that you’re sure sketches at books and went to film school. also working on some more to enjoy, if you like the least every After college, he began writ- episodes for “My Little Pony.” first book. two pages. ing episodes of “My Little Mitch Larson is a funny guy A library neighbor seeks help I recommend these books Pony” and other shows. and a creative author, and about eerie noises in her home. to anyone over the age of 6 Asked which he liked writing “Pennyroyal Academy” is a After her parents refuse to who likes ghosts and a more, books or TV scripts, Lar- spectacular fantasy novel. investigate, Claire, a human good mystery.
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